Data Components

Data Components

Data Components are components that are placed on a report and display data that has been stored in the RentalDesk databases. Data components do not include things like text, lines or information that is not data related as these are considered Standard Components. Before tackling the data components you need to understand how to link them to the data that are reporting on. There are two techniques you can use and the good news is that they are both very simple.

Drag and drop Components from the Data Tree form.

To open the data tree

You see here all the data fields available for the report. Notice that each entry displays the table name first followed by a '-' then the field name.
To add a data field to the report just locate it in the Data Tree, select it and keep your mouse button down, then drag it onto the Designer canvas. Immediately a component of the correct type is created for you and it is linked to the data field you have chosen. Simple.

Assign to a Data component.

Add one of the Data components to the Designer canvas, then select a data field to assign to the component from the Toolbar.

You will need to know what type of Data component to choose. We have marked commonly used components with this

symbol to help you identify which ones you will need to understand most.

The Data Components Toolbar:

DBText This displays values from all type of database fields. Use the DisplayFormat property format how the data will appear. This component is used widely throughout the reports.

DBMemo Prints multiple lines of plain text in a report. Typically, this component is used with Notes fields. To dynamically resize the memo during printing,set the Stretch property to True. Use the ShiftRelativeTo property to define dynamic relationships with other stretchable objects.

DBRich Text You will not need to use this component.

DBCalc Used for simple database calculations (Sum, Min,Max, Count, and Average). The value can be reset when a group breaks using the ResetGroup property. More on this later

DBImage It is unlikely that you will need to use this component. It prints images that have been stored in the Rental Desk database.

DBBarcode Print barcodes based on the BarCode Type and the value supplied via the DataField assigned to the component.

DBCheckbox Displays a checkbox based on the value of the field specified in the DataField property. This component can be used with a Boolean field (True / False).